4 in 1 ways to heal old burns
by TheSecretScribe
Summary: After X3, Pyro has returned to the mansion in order to make peace with his old friends. Whilst they have forgiven him, he has not. Will the latest power mutant on campus be able to help. Or will John become tangled in her problems aswell. Bad summary OC
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the X Men or ay songs included in this fiction, but if anyone is willing to send me Pyro I'd be eternally grateful. But wait, I don't make any money from this so *tears* I can't afford the postage WAAHHH ****L**

**A/N: Important!**

**Attention all readers. This story actually has a plot. :O Anyway sexy goodness will take a little while but for those who enjoy a little kick ass action will enjoy this first bit. But HAVE NO FEAR! I like writing smut so it will appear. Soon**

**Also this story will not be receiving regula updates. SORRY :(**

**but I'm working on another Original Fic which unfortunately takes priority. For now.**

**But I will update this as much as possible...because I LOVE X-Men ...and Pyro but don't spread that around**

**ANYWAY. I have bored you enough READ ON.**

**~ Secret**

...

4 in 1 ways to heal old burns.

Chapter 1. Category 4.5

To be honest the first time St. John Allerdyce met her, he wasn't too keen on her.

The whole school had crowded around the entrance hall to see the stranger who had waltzed into their doors without a second thought before requesting to see the headmaster. John had only come to see because he had Rogue attached to his arm, skin against bare skin, pulling him through the throng of spectators. She managed to work her way to the banister next to Bobby, who nodded to them both before all their attention turned downward.

The figure in front of them stood in the centre off the room, surveying the crowd from beneath the hood of a hideous orange sweatshirt. A large duffel bag was swung over their shoulder. John couldn't see an inch of skin, the stranger's hands were buried deep in the pockets of a pair of ripped jeans, mud cacking the hem and every inch of their shoes.

Logan parted the way through the students, Storm following gracefully behind him. The newcomer watched but didn't say anything as the white haired weather witch approached. Reaching up, Ororo gently pulled the hood off to reveal a head of short black hair, a small chocolate coloured ear just barely hidden, giving the Fire manipulator the impression that this new kid was a boy.

They appeared to exchange words, too quietly for any audience other then Logan to hear. Then the new head of Xavier's institute for gifted youngsters smiled and motioned for the stranger to follow them into her office, beneath where John, Rogue and Bobby were standing. As they both turned they were all shocked to notice the soft, angular features of a girl, with a full pouting mouth and downcast brown eyes.

And a long detailed snake, tattooed in smooth black ink around her left eye. When she looked up at the trio, she smirked cockily and the three watched dumbfounded as the snake curled around her eye once before dipping down her cheek and disappearing into the collar of her sweatshirt.

No John wasn't very keen on her at all

...

Even after three weeks of knowing the girl, John still didn't like her much at all.

He now could stop calling her 'the girl' because he actually knew her name. He knew a lot about Callei Tao Tylleir. She was from Australia, like himself, and was of mixed parentage, hence the Euro-Asian name and the Indo-Asian appearance. She was also very jumpy and had more than once accidentally attacked Jubilee, who had become her personal welcoming party and was the reason he knew all those things. She claimed that for the last 2 years she had been living on the streets and that she was sorry for jumping at people.

Also, he knew she was a Category 4.5 dimension shifter.

John had only learnt that fact because after coming out a session in the Danger Room he had bumped into her going in.

"Sorry. Oh hi Johnny," _Johnny_ had grimaced at the mention Rogue's and now Callei's nickname for him. "You just finished blowing up virtual bad-guys."

"No. Virtual good-guys" He muttered, fighting a smirk.

"Ha-ha very funny. Well badass, step aside. I'm not into collateral damage." She smirked and that snake of hers, which was curled around her neck hissed quietly.

Letting her pass, he grabbed a towel off a hidden shelf and disappeared up to the observation tower, keen to see the shifter fight in order to mock her later. As he watched her standing in the blank room while Storm and Forge fiddled around with settings, he used the towel to dry the sweat of his now dyed red hair.

When he'd finally been forgiven by both Rogue and Bobby, the southern belle had said he needed to show his change of colours to everyone else, so in one of his trademark spur of the moment decisions, John had died his hair red. Not his whole head, just the parts that had been blond when he was with the Brotherhood. Rogue had been so pleased and she couldn't stop playing with it, even now, so many years later.

Turning his hazel eyes toward the large windows, the fire user watched Callei growing nervous, as she shifted from foot to foot.

"You're sure this is safe. I don't want to hurt anyone." her voice crackled over the speakers.

Storm pressed the intercom button and said "Everything is fine Cal, just relax. We have the song, now you have to show us what you can do."

"It's not me your testing." the dark haired girl muttered cryptically, just as Forge hit the start button for level 3.

Figures appeared all over the room. Soldiers in armour plating with heavy machine guns advanced at her slowly. John smirked as Callei took a few deep slow breathes, settling her nerves as she pulled up her sleeves, revealing two sai daggers, tattoos against her inner forearms. As one of the soldiers reached arm length, she slipped her arm out, slicing his throat with her now very real black sai.

John's eyebrows went up. So she could pull the 2D pictures into this 4D world.

He watched with half amusement and half interest as the shifter carved through the men. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Forge turn the level dial up to level 5. Just as the men started firing, Callei ducked behind a van before doing something John really hadn't expected. She used her Sai to slice through the front of her shirt. Before taking the tattered pieces of blue material and tying them just underneath her small breasts. John could see her snake, rearing back like it was preparing to strike.

When she spun back into the action she had a gun in her hand. She fired rapidly, a determined glint in her eyes. When she ran out of bullets, the shifter pulled the hand behind and swept it toward her assailants, a black blur following her movements. In seconds the blur became a panther, the creature running, slashing and ripping the men apart.

She was on level 9, had been going for a little over an hour and John was now simply impressed. Even Jubilee only fought to a level 8. Heck even he only fought at a level 12, he may have been able to do more, had the government allowed him to train.

A soldier managed to get in a solid shot on the raging Panther's chest, sending the ink-based creature into shatters. Only to find Callei sailing down at him a hand and a half sword flashing down, spearing him into the floor. The girl shuddered as she stood there, not noticing the men approaching her at a furious pace. John's knuckles were white as he gripped the seatback in front of him.

"Come on Cal." he thought to himself, "Come on wake up, and wake up, WAKE UP!"

A gunshot went off and a soldier fell to the ground as others stood dumbly around. John didn't know what happened. One moment a fragile looking Callei had been there, the next she had been wielding a gun, dressed completely different, her deceased panther and a wolf beside her. Her snake was the only remaining tattoo on her body. The rest appeared to have become true, various weapons and things attached to her, wound around the dragonfly wings twitching slightly from her back. Even her hair had grown, now tied in two short pigtails high on her head.

"Who are you?" The sound of Storm's voice had John almost jumping out of his skin. Down in the Danger room, 'Callei' looked up at us. But she didn't seem like Callei. The smile she bore was one of demonic childish glee, her features seemed younger, here eyes bigger and more...innocent.

"I'm Laciel. 3rd Dimension." the voice of ''Laciel" was higher and she giggled hysterically when Forge let the men charge once again. John's eyes grew wide as comprehension dawned. Callei controlled the 2nd dimension, could bring it into this one herself. This Laciel was some kind of split personality gone array, and it was she who controlled the 3rd dimension. The one who could make all the images real at once.

Her childish happiness was almost sickening as she sent the animals out to attack, each began to terrorise the soldiers around them. She brandished the gun before unclipping a grenade and throwing it over her shoulder, letting it explode truthfully as she flew away from the blast. Safe in the tower, John watched in shock as Forge once again turned up the level, now on level 10. 

"Do I have too...But I only just started...FINE. Tag you're it!" Laciel shouted, as if having a one-sided conversation with herself before closing her eyes and plummeting to the floor. Storm let out a strangled cry which was meaningless as the girl flipped gracefully before landing daintily on her toes. She had changed again.

Her hair was once again longer, it fell over her face in long sexy ringlets, half her face hidden behind it. The animals and all the other weapons had disappeared as she walked toward the guards, her hips swaying. Every eye there tracked that slight sway, for the first time John noticed that she had legs that went for miles. Just as she reached the first soldier, pressing against him, Storm's voice crackled through the speakers, shaky and slightly sticky "who...who are you?"

The woman turned her attention away from the dazed cybersoilder to face them and the mutants in the tower melted under her gaze. "Lielac sweetie, 4th Dimension." she whispered breathily, making them all shudder. A shot went off and everyone flinched. Lielac held the barrel to the soldier's stomach as he slipped from her frame, never even looking at him. None of the men even reacted as their comrade fell to the floor.

"4th dimension. But this is the 4th dimension!" stuttered Forge. John wanted to slap him for questioning her.

But Lielac just smiled. "I know."

Her arm shot out as slowly particles from the tattoos on her back began to slowly travel toward her in a stream.

"Which means everything here is MINE!" she screeched as she began to hurl what looked like nuclear atoms at the soldiers, each only coming to their senses as the atom hit them. Her laugh rolled over each of them like honey.

"Turn it up higher." she all but moaned. Forge complied without a second thought.

"Higher." she moaned, even as the men stopped reacting to her and began to move in. Forge once again did has he was told.

"HIGHER!" she screamed, head thrown back. The moment the dial hit 15 and the men started firing, everyone snapped back to themselves.

"Holy shit! It's on 15. Storm those bullets are real, she could die!" Forge screeched. A low chuckling echoes not just over the speakers but, throughout the whole room. It chilled John's very blood and made his hair stand on end.

"Aillec. 5th dimension." She long haired girl replied. Her hip-long hair was braided and swung over her shoulder. The absent expression plastered on her face as she stared into space and a small red hole appeared in the centre of the room where the black dots had combined. It grew slowly and John didn't need to be great at science to know what the 5th dimension was. Anti-matter. The opposite of pure energy.

Storm was scrambling around, swearing heavily as she searched for something. "Play you bloody thing, I promised I wouldn't let Aillec out. Damn it play you stupid thing PLAY!"

Heavy electric bass began to pound through the speakers as the room around Aillec dissolved. Her blank expression turned toward us as she strode, quiet as death toward the watch tower. "No. Don't you dare!" Even as she spoke her graceful movements became jerky as she began to shake as Three Days Grace began to pulsate through the room.

_I can't escape this hell  
So many times I've tried  
But I'm still caged inside  
Somebody get me through this nightmare  
I can't control myself_

John just stared. Stared blankly as Aillec's Anti-matter shrunk and disappeared as the girl began to have a full out seizure on the floor of the empty Danger room. Still no one moved to help her.

_So what if you can see  
The darkest side of me  
No one will ever change this animal I have become  
Help me believe it's not the real me  
Somebody help me tame this animal_

Storm turned the volume down as the twitching slowed and those blank eyes closed and the still lips began to slowly move. As the music stopped entirely John heard, a faint whisper over the echo of the room.

"Somebody help me through this nightmare  
I can't control myself  
somebody wake me from this nightmare  
I can't escape this hell"

Then Callei when still

Forge let out a deep sigh before clicking away at his keyboard, as Ororo appeared in the below room. She gathered the unconscious girl up in her arms and left, probably to take her to the infirmary. John couldn't decide to be disgusted or in complete awe.

"That's a Category 4.5 for you." Forge said as he glanced at the fire user's shell-shocked form.

John mentally slapped himself before nodding at his mentor and leaving the tower. He made his way through the underground hallway to the elevator; animal I have become still ringing in his ears.

No, St. John Allerdyce still didn't like Callei Tao Tylleir.

She was more dangerous then he was.

...

please R&R I'm begging

Come to the dark side, we employ smutty writers 

After X3, Pyro is back a the mansion. Forgiven partially, John is still looking for the way to cure his nightmares. Can the new mutant on the scene patch up this singed heart. Bad Summary.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I own nothing...my Callei, and her background and the plot kind off. If I made any money from this then I would buy it therefore I wouldn't have to put these annoying disclaimers that I always forget...moving on**

4 in 1 ways to heal old burns

2. Fire lit D&M's

Screaming woke John again.

It was always the screaming that had him jolting out of bed. Those ghosts that haunted him. _You kind of deserved to be cursed fire boy,_ some pessimistic corner of his brain piped in. Turning on his side, the red numbers 2.18am flashed at him. Throwing his blanket off, John shoved his feet into his combat boots, forgoing socks altogether as he snatched up his precious shark lighter which still held a little of yesterday's Zippo fluid rations.

Glancing over to see that Bobby was still sound asleep, the fire user sighed quietly as he watched his best friend (for he was still his best friend after everything that had happened.) shift in his sleep, snoring. He tiptoed around the icemaker's bed before gently opening the door and ducking out. Once he was outside the room, John buried his hands deep inside his pockets and began to make his way toward the ground level of the school.

His footsteps surprisingly light for someone wearing combat boots, John focused on the cool feel of his Zippo against his overheated skin. He let his feet carry him toward what had become his usual spot. John resisted the craving to flick his lighter until he was seated on the slightly damp grass in what was the edge of a garden bed.

With a snap and a flick he clicked his Zippo open and stared at the fire. He remembered it being a Haven when at the institute before, a weapon with the Brotherhood. He had caused so much pain.

_Screams echoed around him as he laughed, the smell of smoke and burning flesh filling his nostrils. The flames crackled and grew more and more and he just let them. He let them grow and destroy. Consume. Devour._

_And not once did Pyro think to stop them_

John was pulled from his waking nightmare by a shadow crossing one of the garden lamps on the path.

Looking up, he saw the outline of a person, darting from light to light. John's first thought was it was an intruder and he readied himself to defend his new found place in the world. The irony of him being so ready to defend an institute he had once despised wasn't missed by the fire user.

The figure suddenly moved from its spot under the garden lamp, sprinting toward John at break-neck speed. John pulled the flame from its place on the Zippo into his hand, letting it grow to the size of an orange. Prepared to hurl the fire ball at the slightest provocation, John drew his arm back and fired just as the siluette reached a few metres from him.

"AHHH!" she shrieked,

John managed to stop the flame just before it touched Callei's face. The girl had dropped to the floor in order to dodge the fireball, arms raised to shield her face. When she realised that she obviously wasn't on fire, one of her eyes cracked open, then the other, until both brown eyes were trained on John.

"Callei! What the HELL?" John cried.

As she got to her feet, Callei retorted, "I could ask you the same thing. Do you hurl fireballs at everyone who passes, or was that just for me?"

John sighed and dropped back down onto the grass. "Like I'd waste my time with you." The shifter just pulled a face at him before sitting next to him on the ground. John looked at her crossly, the firelight making her easy to see. She wore a large baggy white t-shirt that came down to her thighs and a pair of cotton boxer shorts. When she moved the sleeve of her shirt dropped, revealing the smooth curve of her shoulder. It had another tattoo on it, a coil of something wrapped around her, rope perhaps. John couldn't help but notice her skin seemed to glow in comparison to the dark black ink.

John stopped himself there. What the hell was he thinking, admiring Callei's shoulder? And _glowing, _he didn't talk about glowing skin. He needed to spend less time around Rogue. Pulling the fire back he was about to extinguish it when Callei caught his wrist.

He turned to tell her to get off but when his eyes met hers he was shocked to see there was a shy fear there. Did she think he would actually have hurt her? Was she frightened of him now? Good, she should be. But still, John didn't really want to her to be scared. And she looked positively petrified.

But instead of flinching away from him, as he had expected, she just looked down sheepishly as she said. "Don't put it out. I'm kinda … well you never know what's out there ha aha." She pointed toward the edge of the grounds where the forest met up with the school gate. At the sound of a wolf howling the girl stiffened, leaning closer to John. No John corrected himself; she leaned closer to the light, not him.

"What? You're expecting a werewolf to spring out of the woods and eat you!" He laughed.

Callei glared half-heartedly at him. "Hey come off it. I've met some weird people in the last two months. I mean; there's a kid with a forked tongue, a girl who can move through walls. I mean you're a fire-boy! How do we know that there aren't bad guys out there, people who would use there mutation for evil or whatever?" she whispered that last part, as if to not alert the 'bad guys' that she was on to them.

"How do you know you're not talking to one right now?" John tried to make it sound light-hearted but inside he really met it. He was a bad guy, a member of the Brotherhood through and through. Everyone saw him like that. Callei was no different.

The shifter turned to stare pointedly at him. "You shouldn't say that. You're not a bad person John." Ok maybe she was different.

"Oh yeah! And how would you know?"

She just looked at him as if he had asked the stupidest question in the world. "If you were a bad person, you would have let that fireball scorch me. You would have put out the fire when I told you I was scared. You wouldn't be sitting here with me now. So you're not a bad person."

She made it sound so simple, so matter-of-fact. John just turned away from her, what would she know anyway?

"I know people do all sorts of things when you care about someone." Damn it, he said that out loud.

"You said that out loud too." Callei smiled before pulling something out of her pocket. Since when do boxer shorts have pockets anyway?

"Since now." FUCK!

Callei laughed as John glared at her, then went back to flicking his lighter open and closed. John hoped the noise would annoy her and she would go away.

"Oh come on Johnny, I just wanted to show you this." Groaning, the fire user glanced at the picture being shown to him on Callei's Ipod. It looked like her, in fact it was her, smiling widely, what looked like a club dance floor behind her. Her hair was longer though and she looked about two years younger, maybe 15. But still, it was Callei.

Smirking at her, he said, "You have a picture of yourself as your screensaver. Narcissistic much?"

Her shocked face made him snicker. "Wow, you actually know what narcissism is!" the smile disappeared, replaced by a playful glare. Callei just shook her head, "No it's not me."

"Looks like you."

Poking her tongue out, she corrected him. "Well it's not. That's my twin."

John stared at her, shocked. Callei, a twin. No way! She was too tall, weren't identical twins short. One Callei was quite enough. Did that mean there was another mutant as strong as her wondering around? Was she as volatile as Callei? Did have the same annoying temperament? Did her eyes look like amber in firelight as well? Whoa, John though to himself, erase that last part Allerdyce.

"Her name is Miori. She's my kid sister by about two minutes." A small smile spread on the shifter's face as she looked at the picture. "She's not a mutant like me, well she is but not as powerful. Her mutation is tiny, she sings and it does stuff to my head, calms me down or makes me stronger. She can even heal me. And she can control the other… well the other me's I suppose." She shrugged.

Noticing John's quizzical look, Callei sung "Somebody help me through this nightmare, I can't control myself." Her voice was low and rough and John thought back to the Danger Room and how the song had put Aillec to sleep.

"Where is she now? Wouldn't it be better for her to be here all the time, to keep them under control?" John asked.

Callei began to pluck pieces of grass from beneath her, not looking at him as she said. "I don't know where she is. Last time I saw her, she was in hospital. I put her there."

Sighing she sat back, leaning back on her arms to stare at the ball of fire hovering around them. "It was an accident; we were fighting over my latest tattoo, the Sais. I got so angry that Laciel came out and sliced her up before she had a chance to start singing. By the time I managed to get control again, Mio had been seriously hurt. My parents took her to the hospital and I made up something about her falling through a window. When they said she would be alright, I left. I was too dangerous to be around her so I ran away. My parents didn't even file missing persons. I'll never see her again if I have any say in the matter. So you see, we all do things we don't like because we think its right."

She smiled at John, eyes slightly watering and John just stared at her. Had she really just bore her heart to him? Confided in him? What did she expect him to do, comfort her. He was a bad guy, he didn't comfort people.

Instead he turned back to his Zippo, flicking it again. "Well I did it for me, no one else. So I guess it doesn't count for me."

Shaking her head, Callei chuckled, "Being selfish isn't a bad thing. Heck no one would do anything if it wasn't for selfish reasons."

"But you left to save your sister. That seems pretty selfless." John replied, confused.

"I left because I can not bear the idea of hurting her again, because it makes me feel awful to watch her suffer. See, it's all about me in the end. So being selfish isn't that bad, as long as something good comes of it in the end."

Wow this girl is deep. John would have to re-think his idea of her being a brain-dead twit like Kitty and even Jubilee sometimes. Had something good come from him going to the Brotherhood? Nothing came to him at first, but soon little things popped into his head. He had gotten much stronger, he could protect a lot of people know. He was now really tech-savvy after watching Magneto fiddle with all those machines so he was really helpful to Forge. He could now frighten anyone who threatened Rogue or Bobby. He could protect the people he cared about. So maybe, just maybe, he wasn't that evil after all.

"Now, off such dreary topics, put this in your ear." Callei's voice shocked John out of his tangled thoughts. Callei offered him a headphone as John took it instinctually. As he placed it in his ear, he silently hoped she wasn't going to play some sissy crap, like Miley Cyrus or Britney Spears or any of that other girly shit.

She held up the I-touch so he couldn't see the screen and unlocked it. "This is a weird game I play. I'll scroll down my song list and you say when, I'll stop it and play whatever song you landed on. That will be your theme song. I'll tell you right now, my Ipod is pretty clever. So go."

John shook his head. How on earth did she go from such deep conversation to saying her Ipod was "clever" and decide she was going to give him a theme song? But even as he thought how trivial this was and how strange the girl beside him is, he let a smile spread on his face and at a random point muttered "When."

The soft ticking stopped and Callei grinned. "I swear this thing is psychic." She hit play and electric guitar riffs started to pulse in John's ear. John looked down at the name of the song and had to admit, he may have to agree with her on this one. The words Firefly, by Breaking Benjamin scrolled across the screen.

_You're my friend  
You're a lot like them  
but I caught your lie  
and you know I did  
Now I'm lost in you  
like I always do  
And I'd die to win  
'cause I'm born to lose_

Callei and John smiled at each other and John stared to laugh when she closed her eyes and stared to sing along with the music, her low voice like warm honey compared to the rough tenor of the lead singer.

_Firefly_

_Could you shine your light_

_Now I know your ways_

'_Cause there just like mine_

_Now I'm justified _

_As I fall in line_

_And it's hard to try_

_When your open wide_

Callei stood up, the headphone falling from her ear, but she continued to sing in perfect time as she spun and twisted to the music, her arms held above her head and hips swaying slightly. She opened her eyes and the firelight reflected in them. John couldn't help but join in when she held her hand out to pull him to his feet.

_Take my hand_

_We'll be off and then_

_We'll come back again_

_To a different land_

_Now I like this way_

_You can go away _

_If you guess that name_

_You can not replace_

By the time they had reached the final chorus the two teenagers had spun, moshed and air-guitared there way to the main compound, fireball following them the whole way. Callei attempted to play her left leg like an electric axe and ended up tripping over onto the concrete. Her head hit the floor with a crack and John dropped into a crouch beside her, stifling laughter as she rose up onto her elbows and glared at him.

"You ok there Pretty-eyes?" John asked, the nickname slipping out before he could stop it. He was about to take it all back when she laughed and said "Fuck you firefly…" and proceeded to sing the rest of the song, those amber-brown eyes looking straight at him.

"_Have you lost your light_

_Now I hate your ways_

'_Cause they're just like mine_

_So you lost my friend_

_Such a sorry end_

_And I don't know why_

_So I joke and smile"_

John didn't know what she meant by that, or if she was even singing about him. The last chorus seemed to fit them both. He helped her to her feet and the serious mood shattered when she tripped again and fell against the door. The two burst down into laughter, clutching their sides as the tension rolled off them and dissolved into peels of hysteria.

They only both began to regain their composure when one of he kids came by and looked at them quizzically. The boy watched the two as they stood up, Callei biting her lip to prevent her from giggling.

John straightened and then glared at the boy who was staring at him with a dumb-founded expression. The kid ran from the room and Callei swatted him lightly.

"Did you have to scare him?" she didn't really seem upset, not with that cheeky smile still plastered on her face.

John shrugged and said "Can't have him ruining my rep by saying that I have a sense of humour."

"Oh poor, poor Johnny. Caught giggling like a school girl by a 12 year old. What ever shall we do?" Callei mocked him playfully.

Shoving her lightly he retorted, "I believe you were giggling too."

"Oh yes but since I am a school girl, so it is completely acceptable. You on the other hand are neither female nor in school anymore. Hence it's only insulting to you." She poked his chest lightly at the word 'you'.

The sound of footsteps had both teenagers freezing and glancing around. The clock on the wall read 5.30 am. John realised he had been out with Callei for over 3 hours. He could hardly stand being around anyone for that long. Bobby, Forge and maybe Rogue, but that was about it. He glanced over at the dimension shifter beside him; only find her making her way to the door.

She turned around and smiled at him, "Well goodnight Firefly. See you at breakfast." And with that she disappeared from sight, humming Breaking Benjamin as she made her way back to her dorm.

John peered out the corridor to see she was gone. Shrugging, the fire user made his way down the opposite corridor, clicking his Zippo with one hand, holding Callei's Ipod in the other.

He'd give it back at breakfast.


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I own nothing, I make no money. That is all**

4 in 1 ways to heal old burns

3. Stop thinking like that!

John POV

When Bobby shook me awake in the morning, my usual ritual if throwing the first thing on hand came to a halt when I noticed what I was about to throw. I still told him to fuck off; I just removed the projectile from the mix. Instead I dropped Callei's Ipod onto the bedside table and flopped back down onto the bed, burrowing further into my pillow in the hopes that I could catch a few more hours sleep.

The gurgled choke noise I heard coming from my roommate had me cracking one eye open. His dumbstruck face was just so completely "Bobby" that I couldn't suppress the smirk that crackled onto my face. He still held his hands up, as if to block any kind of incoming attack, and his blue eyes were wide with shock. I quirked an eyebrow at the blonde boy and that seemed to knock him back to this plane.

"Come on John. Breakfast is in ten."

I made to pull my blanket over my head but Bobby caught and tugged it off me, causing me to hiss as cold air hit me. Shooting up, I gave him my best death-stare before skulking into the bathroom, slamming the door behind me, mumbling to myself, "Bloody roommate, don't want one."

"You know why they have us rooming together and its not about to change anytime soon." Bobby shouted through the door. Yeah yeah I knew. They still can't completely trust the ex-brotherhood member not to burn down the school so he has to be supervised even in his sleep.

Scrubbing the grit from my eyes, I blindly reached out and turned on the hot water full blast. I pulled my shirt over my head and glared at the door. "Stupid Ice-cock and waking me up. Dumb breakfast, too early."

Tripping out of the rest of my clothes, a pleasured sigh slipped from me as the scorching hot water hit my bare back. Letting the water drill into my tired muscles, I scrubbed my face again until I could finally open my eyes fully, although I couldn't really see much through the amount of steam that was filtering around the room. I let out another sigh and leaned my forehead against the cool tiles and smiled.

I couldn't tell you why I was smiling. I was just feeling really good bout today. Nothing was really happening either. It was Saturday, so everyone was off to do whatever they liked. It also meant that I didn't have to report in to Doctor Blue Beast today, I was free to do whatever I pleased, no counselling, so rehabilitation, I didn't even have to work with Forge. Ok maybe I did know why I was smiling.

I grabbed the bar of soap and stood up straight as I lathered up my body. The water quickly washed the soap and grit off my body as I, regrettably, turned off the water and slipped out of the shower. Wrapping a towel around my waist, I grabbed my toothbrush and looked around for my toothpaste, not finding it anywhere; I noticed Bobby's pristine tube of expensive, minty toothpaste sitting on the bench. Oh what the hell?

Grabbing the paste, I squeezed the blue sparkly gel onto my toothbrush. Seriously Ice-cock, Sparkles? Shrugging my shoulders, I stuck the brush in my mouth and wondered back out into the room.

Bobby was puttering around the room, picking up armfuls of clothes and dumping them into the clothes basket. I smirked at him and before slouching over to my dresser and rooting through it, dropping clothes all over the floor on purpose. My anal roommate shot a disgusted look as he scooped up the clothes I had dropped. I just grinned around my toothbrush and grabbed any random set of clothes before slipping back into the ensuite bathroom, making sure I knocked over more stuff in the process.

"John! You re such an immature litt-." The bathroom door shut on my roommate's tirade.

Spitting out the toothpaste, I grinned evilly at the door. Bobby was such a tight-arse at times. I suppose it was one of the reasons I liked the guy so much. Rogue said we balanced each other out, ying-yang style and that was why we got along so well. I didn't know about any of that airy- fairy crap but I knew that, no matter what shit happened between us, Frost boy had my back and I had his. His offering to room with me when he could be sharing a teacher's suite with Rogue is just one example of that.

Smiling at my reflection I remembered that right after the battle at Alcatraz, when the Earth itself was falling apart as Dr. Grey went psycho, Bobby pulled my beat up body from the wreckage. To think, that boy next door would have been able to beat me. Well he sure showed me huh? My reflection smirked wickedly as I recalled scorching a couple of Brotherhood misfits who thought they could take on an X-man. We ended up making a pretty good team.

I took a slug of mouthwash as I pulled the t-shirt over my head. The alcohol burned my cheeks and I watched myself spit the sticky blue liquid into the sink. I exited the bathroom at a leisurely pace to see that Bobby had already left; the room spotless as usual. Grabbing my brown leather jacket I left the room after snatching my Zippo and Pretty eye's Ipod. I needed to stop thinking of her as Pretty eyes. They were not that nice. Even if it was like seeing fire reflected in frozen fire. Stop it Allerdyce!

My internal monologue only stopped when I reached the dining hall. The room was milling with all the kids, chatter bounced of the walls as fast as they did. "Some things never changed" I thought to myself.

Dodging a sausage missile, I attempted to make my way over to the teacher's table where Bobby and Rogue already sat as the only teachers present. Kitty was seated across from Rogue as they chatted animatedly. The senior began fiddling with her fork when she turned around and saw me as I approached. Shadowcat was one of the many who were still wary of me. Sighing, I shoved a chair away only to hear a resounding "OW!"

Jimmy, aka Leech popped his head out from under the table, rubbing the goose-egg now forming. "Shit kiddo you ok?" I asked.

Leech grinned at me before dismissing the incident with a wave of his hand. Now, at 13, the kid had been one of the first to forgive me for…..well trying to kidnap and kill him. The kid actually spent a lot of time in the Danger Room with Forge and I, he is really skilled with a 640 kinetic spanner ratchet. Although he was rather quiet.

"No worries Mr. Allerdyce, he replied, patting my arm lightly. When he touched me I felt the prickly emptiness of his mutation locking away mine. Although he had worked really hard to control his mutation from sucking away others around him, he still couldn't help it when he touched people. Noticing what he had done, Leech flinched away from me with a regret filled look.

"Sorry sir."

As heat flooded my body again I quickly ruffled his hair, only feeling the slightest pull. Jimmy grinned up at me before disappearing into the crowd, most likely off to sneak a third helping of pancakes.

"Stop staring into space Johnny, your eggs are going cold," Rogue shouted across the room.

Raising my hand in acknowledgement, I refused to flinch at the use of that nick name. Those girls were trying to make me look like a git.

I fought my way through the kids, eventually sitting myself down on the worn cushioned chair beside Rogue. An enormous plate sat before me, pilled high with scrambled, fried and poached eggs; bacon; sausages; tomatoes; hash browns; pancakes dripping with maple syrup and three pieces of toast. Beside it sat a streaming mug of coffee and a tall glass of orange juice. It was all still fresh.

Slinging an arm around Rogue's shoulder, I gave her a one armed hug. "Oh Roguey, what would I do without you?"

The southern belle giggled and spun a strand of my hair around her index finger as I began to dig into the banquet before me. "Yah would probably still be asleep." I nodded in agreement, grinning around a mouthful of egg.

Kitty eyed the two of us with a speculating stare. She didn't get the hair thing or Rogues obsession with it. But then again, there wasn't much Kitty did get. In all honesty, I don't give a damn so I'm quite content to let her think all her strange, troubled thought. "So the guys have challenged all the teachers, which by extension includes you, to a basketball game this afternoon." Bobby said from the other side of Rogue. "What do you say John, want to teach these little squites that they shouldn't mess with those older and wiser that them?"

Swallowing, I replied "Older and wiser. So it'll be me against all of them then." I ducked when he threw an ice cube at me. Rogue swatted him in the arm with an outraged cry. While her back was turned I begged a mushroom at his head. Smirking at each other with playful challenge in our eyes, we knew this was far from over.

Bobby silenced her with a playful peck on her lips, leaving the brunette with a shy mile. Those two were so lovey-dovey. I rolled up half of a pancake, stuffed a sausage into it and then shoved the whole thing into my mouth. Kitty and Rogue both pulled disgusted faces and I just grinned, cheeks bulging.

Conversation bubbled across the table as Piotr and Jonas joined the table. I was wrestling a stolen piece of toast from Jonas when a purple blur came running up and dived underneath our table. Jonas and I both noticed and ducked our heads under the mahogany table top.

Callei sat curled up on the floor, looking out of breath and seriously disturbed. She pressed her finger against her lips in the universal sign of secrecy, amber eyes wide and begging. Jonas shrugged before sitting up, tugging the piece of toast from my hand as he did.

"Callei what are you doing?" I hissed.

She shushed me again and quickly crawled over. "Hiding from Jubilee. She wants to take me shopping."

I had to smile at the look of horror on her face. I've never seen a girl so absolutely offended by the idea of a trip to the mall. At the sound of said shopaholic's voice, Callei whirled around and backed up further until she bumped into my calves. She looked up at me, pleading eyes begging me not to rat her out. Smirking, I just caught her glare before sitting up in my chair and taking a slug of coffee.

Rogue lifted an eyebrow at my grin as I drank. Flicking my eyes down, I mouthed Callei before taking another sip of my coffee. Understanding dawned on her face as Jubilee came up to the table and asked in an exasperated voice, "Goddamnit has anyone seen Quartet? She has to come to the mall with me!"

"Why? What do yah need?" Rogue asked.

"Oh are you going to get dresses for the HAMR Dialogue next week? I need one too! Oh can I go?" Kitty squealed at an almost unrecognisable decimal.

"The what?" Jonas asked.

Jubilee gave him a look as though he had asked what colour an orange was. "The big Human and Mutant Relations talk happening next week. Duh! Anyway, it's just a great excuse for us girls to dress up with all pretty and flirt with sexy military men." I rolled my eyes at that comment. Those military men would happily give us all the cure if we gave them the opportunity.

"So, I need Callei to come with me. The girl doesn't even own a skirt, let alone something pretty enough to wear to a ball." I felt the dimension shifter cross her arms at that.

Leaning back in my chair, I peek down at Pretty Eyes with an evil smirk playing on my lips. Reading the look on my face I watched as fear spread over hers as she shook her head rapidly. Chuckling, I opened my mouth as if to reveal her and she grabbed my knees. Her face was no longer begging but was now glaring death threats if I dared reveal her hiding place.

"I think I saw Callei un-OWW!"

A sharp pain shot through my thigh and I recoiled back from the girl beneath the table. I lean back and half glared at her, half stared in awe.

She BIT me!

Callei had shuffled back so she was in the centre of the table, shooting me a mischievous grin. I toughed the spot on my inner thigh which still tingled from the bite. My cargo trousers were still slightly damp from her saliva and I could feel the indents of her teeth on my skin.

"John what on earth-?" Jubilee's eyebrows creased in question as she peered under the table. Having been caught out, Callei just smiled sheepishly and waved half-heartedly before sliding fluidly in between mine and Rogue's chairs. I couldn't help but notice how her long sleeved striped shirt rode up a little as she moved, flashing the tiniest patch of smooth coffee coloured hip.

No, no stop right there Allerdyce. You do not thing those things about Pretty Ey-Callei. Quartet. Damn it! I sound like some fourteen year old virgin who with his first crush. I'm a god damn nineteen year old ex-brotherhood mutant, badass and about as far from a virgin as humanly possible. And badasses do not develop crushed.

The two girls were now loudly bickering with each other, John only half listening as he leisurely ate the rest of his food, only catching some phrases like tattoos… skirts… and a lot of whining noises. Eventually Rogue had had enough and stood up abruptly from the table, rattling cutlery and plates alike. "Will you two please be quiet? Ah'll take yah if ya'll promise not to stop bickering."

Jubilee and Kitty whooped in sync at that, both jumping up and bouncing around a pouting Quartet. The dimension shifter was sulking, bottom lip poking out as she was lead off by the giggling teenagers. Rogue kissed Bobby gently before ruffling my hair before she sashayed after the teens. Remembering the Ipod in my pocket, I jumped up and called out after the girls.

"Hey Quartet!" I shouted, all our friends faces turning to me as Callei shrugged off Rogue's hand and took a few steps back toward us, head cocked in question.

"You forgot this last night." I said to her, tossing the mp3 player at her, which she caught with ease, a grin spreading over her face.

"Thanks Johnny, I've been wandering where I felt it."

We both just smiled at each other for a few moments and I could just see her moshing in the firelight before we noticed our friends staring at us oddly. Jubilee grabbed Callei and pulled her toward the exit, whispering in excited tones I couldn't hear, all the girls suddenly drilling a very confused Callei with questions.

Shaking my head, I sat back down. I'd never understand girls, no matter what I did, or where I go, I'll absolutely never, ever understand girls. It was then I noticed all the guys giving me a very similar look, all their faces as curious as the girls. Apparently being the most curious, Piotr leaned forward and smiled at me.

"So, you and the new girl hey?"

What! That shook me up. Me and… Oh no! I threw my last tomato at Piotr before rolling my eyes at them all. No way would that happen. Ever!

I am not attracted to Pretty Eyes.

Fuck…

…

Callei P.O.V.

I hate shopping. I hate it so much I may cry! And those boys should die for not helping me get out of it. I'm going to skin Johnny for revealing my hiding place, I don't care how hot he is. And it would be a terrible, hopelessly false lie to say he wasn't, or that I hadn't noticed. It was hard not to; he had that bad boy sex-appeal dripping off him.

Which had been the prime subject of discussion since I was dragged into my retail nightmare. All those girls wanted to know about was what happened last night, what was going on with me and John blah blah blah, all the while dragging me from shop to shop throwing a million different dresses at me. It felt so strange dressed up like that. Some of the dressed made me feel like my skin would rip right through them. Miori was always better with the more, female side of things.

Eventually the two had agreed to let me pick my own clothes. It only took me about five minutes to find a store that sold "my kind" of clothes and about three minutes to find something to wear. Rogue wasn't too sure about it, Kitty thought I looked like stupid, but Jubilee said it was perfect for me. I took 1 out of 3 sounds perfect to me.

Finally reaching the sanctity of the Institute's grounds, I took the first chance I could to escape any more talk of glittery eye-shadow, moisturiser and high heels. I'd had my share of girl-talk for the week and was now planning to retreat to an oestrogen free zone. Basketball court.

I plugged my headphones in and hit play as I wandered around the building to the sports fields, but I only hit play once I reached the edge of the court where a rather aggressive games of teachers vs. students was being played. Well, I don't know if it really was fair to count some of them as teachers. Bobby and John were both nineteen and therefore had technically left the institute but, due to the lack of teachers available, Bobby had taken the job as our temporary History teacher, along with Rogue who taught English and Home Ec. I'm still not sure Home Ec. counted as a subject, I took Metal-shop instead, which was taught by Forge and assisted by the said sexy Fire-user.

Speaking of the Fire manipulator, I leaned against a bench and grinned at the boys playing a rather dirty game of basketball. I'll be the first to admit I didn't have the slightest idea as to the rules of basketball, or any ball-sport for that matter, but I shall admit, it looked like fun, and the boys looked great. Most had ditched there over-shirts, some, like Piotr and Jones had ditched clothing from the waist up entirely. Nice view on the most part.

"Oh la la! Take it off boys!" I heard Jubilee shout from behind me and I immediately pressed turned the volume up on my Ipod. I was really not in the mood for a conversation right now, but as John pulled his shirt over his head I had to agree with her.

_Come here big boy  
Ahh, mmmhmm, yeah_

I chuckled down at my Ipod as Christina Aguilera began moaning soft drones into my ears. You said it girl. Skin slightly damp from sweat, hair flicking in his eyes, he was a sight for sore eyes as he dribbled the ball down the court, passing to Forge who sprang clear over Jimmy scored, much to the hollering joy of their team. John high-fived his teammates before smirking over at the girls on the sidelines. I smiled back at him lapping up the eye candy for every drop it was worth.

_I'll give you some oh-la-la_

_Voulez vous coucher avec moi?_

_I got you breaking into a sweat_

_Got you hot, bothered, and wet_

_You nasty boy_

This song was not doing good things to my mind, not in the slightest. He kept moving about, back muscles flexing as he manoeuvred around the court. I could see him cussing when the opposing team scores, see him shouting advice when his team was in possession but my brain wasn't really processing any of it.

Everything becomes erotic when you've got the right music as Mio would always say.

I shook my head, one headphone becoming dislodged as I did. This guy was my friend. _FRIEND…_ not someone I should be drooling over like a love-sick puppy. Bad Callei. Sure he was sexy, but so were plenty of the other guys here in their various different ways. True I was a sucker for bad boys and it's not like he was actually a teacher. But still – off limits. I felt my snake coil around my wrist and I glanced down at it. It was my first tattoo, and I used it so often that it took on a personality of its own, often reflecting my true emotions. Now, it was staring off at the court, eyes following one player in particular.

The Snake was right. No harm in looking.

_Oh baby for all it's worth  
I swear I'll be the first to blow your mind  
Now if you're ready, come and get me  
I'll give you that hot, sweet, sexy loving_

So I looked, just for the game of course. But I looked and drooled a little. With only one headphone in I became a more active spectator, cheering when the students scored and jeering and hissing insults at the teachers – it was the principle of the thing. Students vs. teachers who am I supposed to back.

But alas, the game ended with teachers up 15 points and as they celebrated their victory, I shoved my Ipod into my pocket and turned to leave. But not before John and Bobby jogged up to us all grins. Bobby scooped up Rogue, who had come over halfway through and kissed her long and hard. I pulled a face at the PDA and turn back the fire user.

Although the music was off, the mood it had set in my mind didn't leave me in the greatest place to articulate when it came to facing the attractive mutant. John raised an eyebrow at my silence before Jubilee sprang in to congratulate him. Not on the game of course, but on being such a sexy piece of the male species. I laughed at that, John's face just making it all the more hilarious as he turned the slightest shade of pink in his ears before he spluttered out an insult.

Looking behind the two victors, I saw a couple of the kids approaching them from behind with a large barrel I can only assume was full of liquid. Grinning I backed away slightly from the two just as the kids upended the barrels contents all over the two mutants.

"Jesus Christ"

"Motherfucking son of a -"

And that did it for everyone, we all erupted into fits of hysterics. I dropped to the ground clutching my stomach as the look on their faces, sides aching from laughing so much. Jubilee was beside me, leaning against me as she snorted out her happiness, Rogue trying to stifle her laughter in favour of keeping her boyfriend from exploding at the teens. Forge was doing no such thing and was standing a few feet away giving the two kids a pat on the back.

Out of pure curiosity I glanced up to see what John thought of this all and god a little gobsmacked at the sight I saw. The sun was hitting the water, reflecting as it dripped down his chest and his eyes shadowed by his dripping fringe made him a picture of edibleness. Ok no more sexy songs for you Callei.

He glanced down at me, hazel eyes burning as he said in a hushed voice. "So think this is funny?"

I sat up and shook my head as fast as I could, trying to keep a straight face. As he raised an eyebrow I cracked up again, giggling behind my hand.

"Oh well then I guess you wouldn't mind going for a swim in the pond aye?" he remarked, making a grab for me.

I cried out and rolled away just fast enough to avoid his hand before making a break for it. I heard him shout for me to stop but I kept running, knowing he would chase me down.

"Run Quartet, pond water is bad for your hair!" Jubilee shouted as I rounded the corner and ran full pelt through the grounds. Glancing back I saw John smirking as he chased me, his breathe a little heavier than mine since he had been exerting himself for longer than me. Still made for a great sight. No, no thinking about his water defined abs.

In my distraction as I rounded the corner I failed to notice that I'd been heading toward the school building, or that there were people on the patio watching. This of course, meant I didn't notice at all until I collided straight into a solid wall of Wolverine.

Rubbing my forehead I smiled sheepishly up at Logan, but he wasn't looking at me. He was shooting a glare at John. One I hope and pray I am never on the receiving end of.

"Storm wants to see you Fire boy." Was his gruff words. Never have I heard a message sound more like a direct order before. Logan definitely scared the crap out of me.

"Yeah got it." John nodded as he walked both of us, "this isn't over Pretty Eyes."

I just poked my tongue out at him and whirled away and walked back the way we had come, trying to erase the breathless feeling from my chest.

…..

John P.O.V.

I froze as she spun away and sauntered away, having successfully avoided a swim with the koi fish. I was just gobsmacked.

Had she always had a tongue ring?

Very very bad things rolled through my mind as I stood at that spot. Most involving me, her tongue ring, those Pretty Eyes staring up at m-

No. Stop Thinking About HER!

**A/N: Hey all sorry it took so long to update, been so preoccupied. My greatest apologies but I hope this is worth it. I had a lot of fun writing this actually. **

**PLEASE REVIEW, It was a review that inspired me to write this whole chapter in a day! So you know it works so please please please review and I'll update more**


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